Researchers use human cells to engineer functional anal sphincters in labResearchers have built the first functional anal sphincters in the laboratory, suggesting a potential future treatment for both fecal and urinary incontinence. Made from muscle and nerve cells, the sphincters developed a blood supply and maintained function when implanted in mice. The results are reported in the medical journal Gastroenterology….

The study’s senior author, Kahlil N. Bitar, is pictured here.
(Thanks to investigator Mark Dionne for bringing this to our attention, and for suggesting a more-or-less unprintable way to paraphrase that headline.)